Ark Survival Evolved: Abberration
by Jarody
Summary: After wishing redemption for his destruction and Tyranny on the dreaded Scorched Earth, a man named Josh finds himself transported to a strange new world, with strange creatures, plants and beautiful landscapes beyond imagination.
1. The Fallen Nexus

After facing through the Broodmother, Megapithecus and of course the Dragon, I was sent somewhere no man or woman should be allowed to reside. And now, much like then, I have been sent somewhere that should be left untouched and without any human influence. I took control of Scorched Earth, decimated it, became a god of unimaginable power, with Wyverns, Giant Rock Monsters and a plethora of creatures at my side. I destroyed opposing tribes, and although I thought of them to be evil, and destructive, it was me who was deeply destructive. I demolished their homes and lives with just one breath of fire from my Wyvern, because I thought of them to be uncivilised, evil, but they were just trying to survive in that harsh, carnivorous environment. When I realised what I had done, I knew I had to face my fears, I had to be judged, for I faced the Manticore. It was like no battle I had ever faced before, I felt challenged, for the Manticore was strong. It decimated me to the point where I even tried to reason. Reason, with a mindless, bloodthirsty animal. But then, at that moment, a flash of light appeared and I felt as if I was passing millions of stars at once, like I was being transported somewhere, and finally, my eyes fluttered open, and I found myself here. A place that is more difficult to describe than any other place I had ventured in thus far. It was beautiful, yet i felt a strange aura about it. Something was off about this place.

Although difficult to describe, the area I find myself in is partially forested, but however is dominated by a large lake, a massive, but fairly shallow body of water. And the trees here seem different, almost like mushrooms, but not quite. But when I look above me I see light shining through cracks, with the rest covered up in thick bark, extending off a Titanosaur sized tree across the lake. I have to assume I am the first one here, no one else has ever been here before by the looks of it. But my mission now is clear to me. I will not explore this place, I will not leave my bloody, dirty human mark all over it like i did with scorched earth. I will find a way to leave this place, to reach that light shining through the cracks. I will return, home.


	2. Conocybe Filaris

One of the most interesting things about this place is the vast amounts of plant life present in a land which has little amounts of sunlight. It seems strange, but is it possible that these plants have evolved in such a way that they no longer require high amounts of sunlight to create food and nutrients, and if that is the case, how long has this place been in existence? It has to be millions of years. Perhaps I should stay here and study the strange natures of life here. No. No. I must stay on task. I will not let myself become distracted from my mission. I must find a way to return home.

I begin to walk upward, hoping that eventually it will lead me to the surface, when I hear a voice calling out for me. It's a quiet voice, almost like a whisper, but it's also a tempting one. My feet begin to turn without command, and I head toward the source of this sound. It gets louder, and louder, before eventually it sounds as if it is right below my feet. I look below me, and I see some Mushrooms. They're beautiful. They have a pointy top with white spots and a red colouring. Strange. These mushrooms seem to have evolved in such a way that they have begun to communicate with a human. I must examine them. I reach my hand down and stroke the tip of the mushroom, when I hear an ear piercing screech in my ear. And I turn around and see a desert, people screaming as Wyverns burn them alive, mounted by myself. I shut my eyes tightly and when I open them again, I am now on an island, hunched over the dead body of my brother. I begin to cry, when he jolts awake, and grabs me by the throat. "You killed me. You killed everyone. You. Must. Die" I feel my windpipe begin to crush under the force of his hand, for this is the end. I take my last ounces of breath before my life is taken away into the dark, lava filled depths of hell.

I look around me, I see the once scorching rocks of magma morph into my enemies, my friends. People I killed, people I murdered, people I loved. They all begin to step toward me repeating the same three words, over, and over, and over. "YOU. KILLED US". I start to back away, but my feet begin to sink under the molten rock I am standing on. They all step towards me and all at once, they dig their nails into my neck, blood pouring onto their hands. My breath begins to fade once again, as my life begins to be take-... wait. How can I be dying, when I'm already dead. All my surroundings begin to morph, change and disappear, when I yet again find myself somewhere similar, back on top of the mushrooms.

I try to pick myself up, but I am without energy. I feel my neck. It's scarred, bruised and feels as if I've been strangled, but not literally. It feels as if my windpipe began to close in under the command of my own mind, or something else. That's when I realise. I turn and look at the mushrooms I examined, and my eyes widen in shock. They were what caused me to see everything I did, they were what caused my windpipe to almost implode on itself. They're evil. This place is evil. It's now more clear to me. This experience has just confirmed that I must find a way to escape. But before I do anything, I use my last morsels of energy to lift myself up, and craft a weapon out of the materials surrounding me. I walk over to the red mushrooms, and begin to stab them, crush them, stomp on them. I rip up the mushroom to the point of where only small bits of fungi remain. I create a fire with sticks next to the now empty bit of grass where the mushroom once was, and I kick the last remaining parts of it into the fire.


	3. A Changed Man

**I'd just like to begin this chapter by thanking those who have read and reviewed my story, it really means a lot to me. I'd also like to apologise about the short chapters, I'm new at this. However I am working on a new chapter that should hopefully be a lot longer and more engaging.**

So far, I've been walking 20 hours, and I've made no progress whatsoever. It feels as if I'm walking in circles, everytime I feel I'm getting closer to the surface, closer to home, I end up back exactly where I started. Although, now dwelling on it, it makes a lot of sense. I've never been here before, I've never heard of it, so how would I know which path leads home? I sigh in frustration. Maybe, there's a part, deep inside of me, that doesn't wish to leave this place, that wants to explore, tame, …..destroy. I thought I had rid myself of these feelings, but yet they still control me, they make me who I really am. A monster.

I scream in rage. I begin ripping up plants, punching trees until my hand begins to bleed, hitting my head against my hands. And I carry on, and carry on, and carry on, until I eventually slump to the floor, battered and bloody. Tears fall from my eyes as I think about how murderous I really am. I've never admitted it to myself as much as I am at this very moment. I hate what I am, and no matter what I do, I always will.

Night begins to fall, and I remain abnormally still. I'm not paralyzed, but I cannot move a single bone in my body. I'm in some desperate need of sleep. Whatever creature is out there, I beg, have mercy.

I wake up to the sound of snorts and snuffles, my eyes snap open to see the creature that awaits me….. a Parasaurolophus. Wow, I haven't seen one of those since I was on the Island, although I never tamed one, they personally didn't seem strong enough to me. However, back then I was arrogant, too sure of my own power, I almost definitely underestimated this creature. But I'm now a changed man, maybe I should tame it, to prove myself wrong, that I'm not a monster. I gather up the resources in order to gain the trust of this creature, including berries for food and a slingshot in order to knock the Parasaur unconscious. I get myself on to a high rock, but not a rock high enough that would cause a fall to be fatal. I grab my slingshot, pull back, and right as the rock is about to be released, I notice something strange. Much like the place I'm in, this Parasaur is abnormal. It has strange patterns on its side, they seem as if they're glowing, but the weirdest thing is they don't seem out of place at all. Is this some kind of mutation? Possibly. Or is it an adaptation to this strange environment, I guess the lack of sunlight would need to cause it to make its own light, in order to see food, especially during night when almost nothing can be seen. This reminds me of the plants here, the fact that both kingdoms have adapted similarly to this environment is fascinating, but also troubling. This almost confirms my theory of this place being incredibly ancient. I frown in sorrow when I realise yet again that I really shouldn't be messing with the environment here. I look down at my slingshot, and throw it as far as I can into the lake. But instead of erupting into an outburst of anger as I did yesterday, I smile to myself. I prepare some weapons, some tools, and I take my leave, knowing this time I won't end up back where I started, because like the creatures here, I've evolved.


	4. Sacrifice

I'm almost certain I'm heading the right way this time, or at least, a different way. I haven't seen the lake since I left it yesterday, although, there is no change in the environmental aspects of this land as of yet. I personally thought a temperature change or a change in species inhabiting the area might have been a signal that I'm getting closer to my destination, but no. The temperature remains humid, and the whole land is filled with mutated Parasaurs, Iguanodons and bloody Utahraptors. I've been extremely careful in avoiding the latter. Other than the Raptors however (and not forgetting those evil mushrooms), I don't seem to have run into any life threatening situations at the hands of any large carnivore. It would be a gift from the gods if I didn't run into one in the hopefully short period of time that I'm here, however I count that extremely unlikely. I continue my journey to the surface with a large thought of worry, the more time that passes without me seeing a predator the more likely it is one will show up and eat me alive. I'm shivering at the thought. But I'm also shivering at the now sudden temperature change. The scorching heat has been quickly replaced by the frosty breath of the cold, which means that night is falling, therefore I must set up camp. I drop my bags to the floor and quickly start my campfire. Food has been quite an issue for me so far, however I luckily came across an unsuspecting Dodo Bird, and although it went against my new recently found beliefs about no human interaction with this place, I had to sacrifice its life to save mine. With a sense of regret I begin cooking the birds meat, and as I watch the flesh boil away in the beautiful sunset flames of the fire, I think about what I'm going to do when I leave, when I'm home. I'll visit my mother first, imagine how relieved she'll be to see me, although telling her about my brothers death will be a tricky task, without me being quickly kicked out of the house. I won't have to go into full detail on that one I don't think, she needn't know what happened to him. Then, once I've spoken to my mother I'll return to my work, to my bosses office, and I'll quit. Although these recent experiences have ruined me, on the inside, they have taught me that I shouldn't let anyone control me- especially a money-grabbing, arrogant, big-headed man like he was. And finally, once I'm home, i'll go straight upstairs to my ever-comfortable bed, and I'll take the best nap I've had in 8 months….

My eyes jolt open. Dammit. I fell asleep. I'm not sure how long I've been asleep for but it's been long enough so that my dodo meat has been burnt to the crisp. I can't go much longer without food now, otherwise death will be imminent. But looking at the foggy, pitch black night around me persuades me to wait until morning. I just pray that this night won't be my last.

My eyes jolt open, and once again I find myself lying down on the rock hard floor, in the darkest hour of the night. A crackling noise fills my right ear, and abruptly I turn to see my Dodo Bird, still cooking on the fire. Except this time, the meat isn't burnt to the crisp, it's a shade of bright pink. It hasn't been cooked. Was I dreaming before? Or do I happen to be sleeping on those evil mushrooms. I look below me. Nothing. Just rock. Maybe I'm just crazy. I make the decision to put that thought at the back of my mind while I wait patiently for this for this dodo meat to finish cooking. Time ticks away while I struggle against the battle to stay awake. The meat is taking an awfully long time to cook, but it'll be worth it when this is over. As I struggle to maintain my consciousness my eyes widen at the sudden sound of heavy panting. I quickly turn from side to side, my eyes widened in terror. But all I see is darkness. The Panting gets louder. It's not human, I would recognise it immediately. It's not a Direwolf either, I had a whole pack of them back on the island and not one of them pant that heavily. Then, without warning, the panting stops. I breathe a sigh of relief, and I return to my Dodo Bird…..it's gone. Where the hell did it go? I grab my spear, my torch and stomp out of my temporary camp. I don't give two shits that it's dark now, I just want my Dodo back. I begin to sprint, running around frantically, desperately searching for my food, but to no avail. "You son of bitch, I will find you, and I'll kill you", I scream out into the night, not in any way holding back my rage. I stumble my way back to the campfire, drained of energy, when I see something I can't even begin to describe sitting on my bed. It seems Frog-like, but at the same time doesn't seem like a frog at all. It's skin is slimy, and has no fur, yet it sits like a household dog, and has the eyes of the Pug. But the most striking feature is the anglerfish-like lure coming from the top of its head. It frightens me that something like this exists, although, it almost seems homely. Interestingly it shows no fear in seeing me, it just continues to sit on the bed, almost oblivious to the harsh environment around it. This creature is obviously a creation of this strange environment, similar to the adaptations of the plants and creatures also inhabiting this place. I begin edging towards it, expecting some kind of reaction, however it continues to sit on my bed, dumbfounded. I reach my hand out towards the creatures head, and stroke it. This time, there is a reaction, but a rather unexpected one. Its eyes flicker towards me, and with a strong sense of innocence and sweetness it begins to lick my hand, and while it is disgusting, it proves my earlier thoughts- whatever this thing is, it reminds me of home. For the first time since I got here, since I left home, I feel as if there is hope for me, that there is definitely a way to escape.

* * *

Three days have now passed, and I'm clinging onto my life with a thread. Food has been unbelievably scarce, and there hasn't been a single dodo in sight. My angler-fish dog is the only sign of animal life I've seen in a while now. This creature, which I've named 'Slimeball' by the way, has been following me ever since I left my campfire, although there hasn't been much of a distance to follow, considering my lack of food has considerably hindered my progress. Any second now I could collapse and die. But I continue to walk, I continue to fight against my lust for hunger, hoping to come across anything I could eat for food. Then, suddenly, I feel a rush of blood in my head, and I start to have a lack of control over myself. My body is shutting down. My muscles go limp, paralysis is looming. And then, darkness.

My eyes jolt open, and I find myself three days earlier, back at the campfire. Except this time, my meat isn't even on the fire. What is wrong with me? I'm going crazy. Then the truth reveals itself. I see, to my right- "slimeball" eating my dodo meat. It was him all along. But how am I seeing this? Then, a voice calls out to me. "Brother". I now find myself kneeling next to my dead brother. He kneels down beside me, smiling. His long blonde hair flops down across his right eye, and he's wearing the same hide armour he spent his last living moments in. "Brother" I whisper. Without letting me continue, he reads me like a book. "I know, I know, my face has haunted you ever since you left the island".

"Brother, please, i'm sorry for what I did, I shouldn't have done what I did, just, there is one thing I want to know. Can you forgive me?". My brother sighs, and looks at me disappointingly. "Josh, you know I can't do that. You must find a way to forgive yourself. Now, I'm not here to talk about me. I'm long gone. We need to talk about you, and your survival."

I begin to shout in frustration of my brother's strange calmness. "My Survival? What about my survival? I'm worthless, my life is worthless. My survival is pointless. I have no food, no energy, no water, i'm just about as dead as you".

"Brother, you aren't dead, not even close, but you will be if you continue to ignore the obvious. You need food, desperately, and yet you act as though you can't find any life, when in reality, you've been with a completely fine source of food for the last three days". He gestures towards slimeball.

"No, I won't do it".

"Brother think about this. This "thing" you call slimeball, ate your food, and yet you keep him around as your pet. This thing isn't your pet. It's a mindless creature which will do anything to survive. It's not following you because it likes you, it's waiting for your imminent death. You know what you must do."

"Brother!" And just like that, he vanished out of thin air. I look towards Slimeball. I'm not sure if I believe what he said, but I need food, and sometimes you have to go extraordinary lengths in order to survive.

Once again, my eyes flutter open. But I don't stall. I'm on my feet within seconds, searching for Slimeball. I'm back in the present. The campfire already happened. I'm where I was when I fainted. Then, the unmistakable sound of panting looms behind me. Slimeball is sitting behind me, eyes as wide and innocent as ever. Tears form in my eyes. I reach into my pack, bring out my spear, and… I bring it back, and thrust the spear directly into the creature. My eyes are watering without any signs of stopping. I continue stabbing the creature, whilst screaming in frustration, when eventually, all that is left is a bloody pile of raw meat. I hate myself. I'm a monster, and I'm selfish. Under my breath, I whisper. "I'll miss you slimeball".


	5. A Glimmer of Hope

I'd just like to apologise for the long wait. I've been very busy with exams and revision and stuff. I know Abberation is pretty much dead now, but i'd still like to continue this story. More reviews would be appreciated. Thanks.

* * *

It's been a month, and things have only gotten worse. I've made no progress. It feels as if i'm moving in circles, but there is another possibility. That possibility is that there is no way to the surface. Escape is impossible. I try to clear that thought out of my mind every day, but no matter how hard i try, i cannot help myself from believing it to be true. Corruption has begun to invade my mind once again. I thought i had rid myself of all these dark thoughts, but they call for me every day. It worries me that i may succumb to my inner deep desires soon. It all started with my horrific act over a month ago. I murdered an innocent creature in order to save my own life. But in what way was my life more important than theirs? I think of it now as a misuse of power. All the visions i had, all the dreams, were just the evil parts of my brain manipulating me into doing something no normal, caring, real human could have done. I guess a person really can't change. No matter how hard i try to bury my past it will always come crawling back to me like some recurring nightmare. I'm unstable, maniacal, and possibly the most powerful being in the whole of this hell-bound land. It's funny to think how scared i was of this place originally. It should be scared of me. Yet, fear still overcomes me. I don't want to die a villain. I want to feel redemption. I want to feel like someone who people can look up to. But, when you're all alone in a place like this, and you're someone like me, it's virtually impossible.

Threats continue to confront me also. I've been noticing more and more Raptors as i move through the jungle, so i'm almost constantly buried and hiding under mud. Those mushrooms however are possibly the most dangerous of them all. Every time a patch of mushrooms is at least a few meters away from me, i hear them shrieking out my name, trying to poison me again. Considering how much more broken i am now, an attack from the mushrooms would likely be fatal. Who knows what could happen if i allowed myself to go near them again. That being said, i always feel there's something more dangerous out there. Something even less evil, something more, destructive, reckless. I don't know if i've been imagining it, but sometimes, during nights, i hear noises. Grunting, snuffling. It may sound like nothing, but these noises are different. They're native. They sound as if they belong here, and nowhere but here. Every animal makes noises, but whatever is making those noises, it's no animal.

Food has been scarce. I've been mostly living off berries and edible mushrooms. The mushrooms in particular are more diverse here than anywhere i've ever experienced. I was extremely skeptical about cooking the first batch of mushrooms that i found, especially after the toxic mushroom incident. But ever since that incident those mushrooms call out to me whenever i'm near, so it's easy to spot the poisonous from the non-poisonous. However, mushrooms and berries still aren't enough to live off. At least once a week i have to go out hunting. In fact, i should probably begin a hunt now. I pack up my things, and cross the river. This side of the river should be full of Dodos, as up to this point i've only hunted on the other side. It's similar, although different at the same time. There's something about this side of the river that feels… safe. I might set up camp here tonight if there aren't any complications. It takes me a while to find any suitable food, but luckily i happen upon a cluster of Dodos at the very bottom of the river. And then it hits me. The bottom of the river. I've never gotten to the bottom of the river before. It always seemed to turn and put right back where i started. Finally, after 30 days of pain and suffering, i've took my first step to escaping this place. I want to scream out in joy, but luckily, i have some self control. I quickly sneak over to the cluster of Dodos, and without hesitation i slit all their throats, one by one. If i ration, i should be fine for food for the next couple of days. I can't even remember how unstable i've been for the last few days, because now, finally, my time here has a purpose. My actions since i got here have meaning. Sure, i've still got a long way to go, but i'm one step closer to the surface, one step closer to pride, and one step closer to forgiveness. I set up camp, and prepare for what i expect to be my best night's sleep since i got here.

* * *

It's early in the morning, and all is silent. I slept well, a dreamless sleep for once. I describe them as dreams, but they're quite the opposite. Dreams are supposed to be full of hope, but what i experience is pretty much hopeless. The best word i'd use to describe them is nightmares, although that still doesn't sound right. I begin to roll up my sleeping bag, when i notice something a couple hundred meters away from me. And the first word i can think of to describe it as, is a glimmer of hope. A house. Thatch-built, sure, but still a house, nonetheless. I am well and truly not alone. Or was. We'll see. I don't even bother to pick up my things before i begin to make my way over to this place. The first thing i notice about the house before i even reach it is that whoever built it clearly wasn't very experienced. The thatch is falling out of the string keeping it steady, and the house has holes in it all around the sides. Maybe i can pass on some of my knowledge to this person, teach them how to survive in places like this. There is a campfire, not too dissimilar to mine, right outside the house and it seems it didn't go out too long ago. I can still feel the heat, radiating off of it, and i smell the strong scent of the ash burnt out from the logs. And then, i find myself at the front door. Wow. My future best friend could be right behind this door. I take a heavy and deep breath, composing myself. Here we go. I knock. No answer. It is early, maybe they aren't awake yet. I should probably wait a couple hours, wait for them to come out. I lie down on the grass, next to the campfire, contemplating. What should i say? What will they say? Who are they?

* * *

I awake to a loud buzzing. Damn. I fell asleep. And it was a long sleep. It's the middle of the night. Even after the best sleep i've had for thirty days, i'm still knackered. The buzzing i heard was just a small fly which had landed on my ear. Suddenly, i realise. The person who lives in the house must have seen me here, surely. So why didn't they wake me up? I look over at the campfire, and it's unchanged. Enough is enough. I've given in to impatience. I don't care if it's the middle of the night, i'm going in there. I storm to the front door, and once, again, with a heavy sigh, i compose myself, before opening the door. Right then and there, all my theories and predictions are broken in an instant. A deadly horror bestrickens my eyes. From the ugly, thatch ceiling, a rope is attached, and hanging from it, in a noose, is the body of the man who once lived here. On the walls, written in blood, it reads: there is no hope. I begin to breathe heavily, shocked, horrified, scarred. I have to get out of here. I stumble out of the house, struggling for breath. Running behind the house, i begin to throw up on the grass, on my hands and knees, and when i look up, i see it. I'm on a massive cliff face, and beyond it, i see a beautiful, but enormous luminous marshland. It's beautiful, glowing blue in the night, so different to anything i've ever seen before. But, when i think hope is restored, i realise it's filled to the brim with every possible deadly prehistoric creature you could think of. Megalosaurus, Arthropluera, Titanoboa, i could go on for days. Right then and there, is the time, and the moment that my hope, was shattered.


End file.
